The present invention relates to recording equipment such as an electrophotographic copying machine, and particularly to an exchange apparatus for selectively attaching a developing device and a toner supply container, which are expendable supplies, to such a machine.
As is generally known, in an image processing part of recording equipment such as electrophotographic copying machines, there are instances where a toner supply contained and a developing device need to be exchanged for new ones, in order to vary a color process or to change expendable supplies, Up to now, in such a case, when a toner supply container and a developing device to be removed are exchanged, new ones are separately taken out from respective packages. However, with such an apparatus for exchanging exchangeable parts, there is a fear that toner may be spilled and soil hands or the surroundings, before the toner supply container and developing devices taken out of each package are attached to the machine.
Accordingly, a structure has been proposed such that three parts including an image holding drum, a toner supply container and a developing device are set up in an exchange cartridge, and these parts are exchanged together with the exchange cartridge.
However, this structure is not economical because whenever a toner supply container and a developing device are exchanged, an image holding drum and other parts which are durable parts are also exchanged. This cartridge structure comprising these three parts also brings about a waste of resources because, for example, when toner in its supply container has run out, other parts must be scrapped even if they are not worn out.